Reginald of Châtillon

Reginald of Châtillon (shätēyôN'), d. 1187, Crusader, lord of Krak and Montreal in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. He came to the Holy Land in the Second Crusade and married (1153) Constance, daughter of Bohemond II of Antioch. He was energetic, impulsive, and intolerant, and his quarrels with the Latin princes weakened the position of the Crusaders. In 1159, after plotting with the Armenian prince, Thoros, against Emperor Manuel II of Byzantium, he was forced to submit to the emperor. Captured (1160) by the Saracens, he remained a prisoner over 15 years. After his release he took as his second wife the heiress of Krak and Montreal, and in 1177 he became procurator of Jerusalem for a brief period. In 1182-83 he raided the Red Sea coast. With Guy of Lusignan, whom he influenced and also helped to install as king of Jerusalem in 1186, Reginald advocated a belligerent and disastrous policy against Saladin and opposed the conciliatory attitude of Raymond of Tripoli. His attack (1187) on one of Saladin's caravans violated his truce with the sultan and helped to bring on Saladin's attack on the Christians. Reginald was captured at the battle of Hattin and was executed by the sultan's own hand.